Stories From My Mother
by 91RedRoses
Summary: A collection of stories told by one, mysterious old woman to anyone who will listen. Stories about a three person family, a Mother and her twin children in a time long, long ago. What stories does she have for you? Features chibi!fem!Canada and chibi!fem!America but since they're babies the genders shouldn't really matter.


_So this is a story that I've kind of had bumping around my school for awhile. Sorry about all the OC's in this chapter, but we'll get to see more of Canada and America in chapters to come. Basically this is a collection of stories all centering around America and Canada as babies with their Mother. There will be more stories to come and I don't know if those other stories will always be a "story inside a story" like this one or whether they will just be stand alone, here's the story. I don't know how long this will be either. Anyway I hope everyone enjoys this._

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the intellectual property that is Hetalia; the following story will produce no money for me and is simply done for pleasure and a hope that someone out there will enjoy it.**_

Chapter One: How I Met Their Father

Claire Jackson struggled against the storm. She cursed as her foot slipped in the mud causing her to fall painfully onto her hands and knees, scrapping the delicate skin on sharp rocks. She was in freaking Arizona! Why was it raining? Wasn't this place supposed to be a desert and weren't deserts, oh, you know, DRY?!

A blinding flash of lighting followed by a loud crack of thunder and even heavier rainfall seemed to offer a happy rebuttal to her preconceived notions of Arizona.

She winced and forced herself back up to her feet. For all she knew he was getting closer and would catch her soon. She wouldn't let that happen. Her baby depended on her.

Once again she lurched and stumbled her way forward against the rain and wind, dearly missing her truck but not daring to try and double back for it. As much as she hated to think about it, the truck was only a useless pile of junk with an empty gas tank and he might have set a trap there in case she did go back to its minimal shelter.

Another streak of lighting blinded Claire and she once again lost her balance. Trying to climb this damn mountain range was stupid of her, but when she'd run out of gas on the dirt road earlier that day, she had panicked and just ran off in any direction that kept her separated from him. It wasn't until after she was nearly dying from the hitch in her side that she realized she had run up one of the mountains.

Well, how she got here didn't matter anymore, she told herself. What mattered now was moving and not crying over spilled milk no matter how much she wanted to.

It'd have been nice if she could've found shelter before the rain had started, though.

As Claire began trudging again she tried her best to keep her eyes open for any caves or areas where she might be able to get out of the rain and rest. However, her eyes were refusing to cooperate as they kept trying to alternate between the bright flashes of light, and the pitch black of night. Honestly Claire wanted to give up.

And just as she thought that, she saw what appeared to be a little cottage.

Nearly crying in joy, Claire ran towards the house. She didn't care if it were abandoned or haunted or whatever! Anything was better than being in this rain.

She neared the cabin and was beyond relieved to see that it looked lived in and had lights on inside. She went up and tiredly knocked on the door. A few seconds later, she heard latches being undone.

The door opened, and Claire once again was temporarily blinded as she tried to get her eyes to adjust to the change in light. When her eyes finally cleared, she'd been ushered into the (warm, oh thank heavens, it was warm) cabin and looked around to find a tasteful, but minimalist décor. Her stomach rumbled in hunger as she smelled something delicious coming from what must be a kitchen.

"I suppose that answers my question on whether you're hungry," an amused, sardonic tone quipped from behind her. Claire spun like a professional ice skater going for gold to see the face of her temporary savior.

It was an old Indian… ah, Native American (got to be polite if she didn't want to get thrown out again) woman. The woman's hair was white as snow and pulled back into a long braid that reached the middle of her back. Dark brown eyes with deep lines in the corners peered at her while an old mouth pulled itself into an amused, but gentle grin. The woman was tall, and slender, and while the woman didn't actually appear _that_ old (Claire made a note to ask what cream the woman used to keep her skin looking so young), it was her eyes that gave it away. The brown was so deep and filled with so much knowledge that the woman must have seen many years. The woman was beautiful for her advanced age and Claire bet she was fought over by pretty much every breathing man when she was younger.

Realizing she was being rude and staring, Claire managed to mumble out a "Yes, please…" before she was again ushered into another room and a bowl of soap and a cup of… something was placed in front of her. Not caring what she was eating, Claire happily dug in.

It was good and filling. Finally, Claire reached the end of the bowl and realized she must have looked like a starving dog. Ugh. Mama had raised her better than that…

"Would you like another bowl?"

Claire jumped a little at the woman's soft, alto and nearly groaned out loud. God! What was wrong with her today? Why couldn't she go ten seconds without making herself look like an idiot?

"Ah," Claire started, "if it's not too much trouble for you. The soup is really delicious."

The woman smiled, "I'm glad to hear that. And don't worry about it being trouble. It's been awhile since I've had company… guess that's what I get for preferring the peace of these mountains and living so far from the city." The woman stood and refilled the bowl. Sitting down the woman calmly waited before asking, "Would it be possible for you to tell me why you're running up and down one of the Superstition Mountains in the middle of a storm."

Claire stopped eating and considered the elderly woman in front of her. She thought about the request and found her instincts telling her to trust the grandmotherly woman. Claire had good instincts (for the most part, other than Drake) and the elderly woman really should know the story. After all, she was going to have to leave soon most likely and wanted to tell the woman why. Actually, Claire realized with a start. She just really wanted to talk to this woman and tell her everything.

Claire sighed and said, "Well it's a long story…"

The woman simply nodded, "That's fine. With the storm outside, we're not going anywhere for awhile and long stories are good on stormy nights."

With permission given, Claire began, "I met my husband, Drake Starr, nine and some change years ago when I was a freshman in college. I was drawn to his brooding presence and his mysterious aura. We started going out and I learned that he was part of the ROTC and planned to go work for a private security firm after graduating. Stupidly I loved the thought of being married to some secret commando, the movies just make those guys seem so… attractive? I don't know the right word for it but I was definitely head over heels for him. We dated all through college and after college he got a great job at this security firm and I went and got a job at an accounting firm." Here Claire stopped, and gave a little laugh, "Yeah, accounting. I know it's not glamorous or sexy but I'd always loved numbers and I thought accounting was kind of fun. Plus I was good at it so I landed a nice paying salary early out. But, Drake… he was always so embarrassed that I was an accountant. He often asked me to lie and say I was a stay at home wife whenever his friends from worked asked. It hurt but…" Claire shrugged, "what do you do? So four years after we started dating, Drake asked me to marry him. I said yes and it was a wonderful wedding, everything I had dreamed about as a little girl."

"But even with all the glitter and smiles, I think even then I knew something was… just a little off with Drake. Like I said, he was a brooding sort even when I first met him. And he could be so possessive sometimes. I just thought it was his way of showing me he cared considering he was a mess when it came to speaking about his feelings, but every now and then I would see this glint in his eyes. It usually came out only when he was doing training and fighting the other cadets in ROTC, but sometimes… if we got into an argument, it's like his eyes would become really shiny like glass. Like there wasn't a person behind those eyes but something else." Clair took a deep breath to prepare for the story to come. "After we got married, and he started working at that military-security whatever, things started to get worse. He would often snap at me and make rude comments about how I could 'try to dress a little nicer.' Then he would apologize and say he was stressed. He would buy me little gifts and I lied to myself. Told myself that it was just stress talking and the man I married, or thought I married, was still there. One day though, we got in a big fight," here Claire paused and braced, "and hit me. Beat me really. I had a broken arm, bruises all over my body, a black eye, and at one point he started to choke me. I thought I was going to die. I lost consciousness. When I woke up, he was standing over me. I told myself that I was going to leave him right then and there, but… he said he was sorry. He bandaged me up and he didn't mean to lose his temper…" Claire was crying now, and felt warm arms embrace her and gently pet her head. Burying her head in the woman's chest, Claire continued on, "I didn't care that he was saying he was sorry, I was going to leave. I always told myself I wouldn't ever become one of those battered women you see on TV. The first time a guy hits me, we're through."

"Drake must have realized his 'sorry' act wasn't working because then he leaned down and whispered in my ear, 'If you think you can leave me… just know I WILL find you and kill you. You are a stupid bitch, but you're my stupid bitch and I will kill you—slowly and painfully—before I see you spreading your slutty legs for some other fucker.' I was terrified. He meant it. So I stayed. I let him use me as a punching bag on some days and other days he used my body for different purposes." Claire shuddered at _those_ memories and the arms around her tightened, reminding Claire that she was safe now. "After one of those other days, I began to feel queasy and tired. At first I thought I was coming down with something, but when the symptoms persisted… I became very frightened as an awful possibility came into my head."

"So I went out one day to the store instead of work, bought a little stick, and found out I was pregnant. I nearly died from fear at that moment. I didn't know what Drake would do. He didn't like kids, didn't really want to be a father, and I don't even want imagine what that fucker would do to a defenseless child. I think it was the last thought that actually scared me so much that I stopped being afraid. I couldn't let him hurt our—no MY baby, and so the day after I found out I called my parents, explained the situation, told them I was leaving and I loved them, packed a bag and drove for the nearest women's shelter. Once I got there, the ladies set me up in what they called the 'Anonymous Angel' Program. Basically it was for women with boyfriends or husbands that were so dangerous that while the court preceding were going through, it was best for the women to remain hidden. So I was placed with an anonymous angel, and went into hiding. I thought I was safe, I thought _we_ were safe… but then a little over a month ago someone came to the house I was staying at. I don't who he is, I think he's a 'friend' of Drake's from his business, but he killed the person I was hiding with and I barely managed to escape. I've been running from him since then. I've tried to go the police but he somehow always manages to do something to stop me from getting help! He's like the devil! I was running from him when I ended up on this mountain."

There. The story was done. Now Claire expected the old woman to kick her out and Claire wouldn't blame her. God knows it isn't her fault that a killer was after Claire. Besides, Claire didn't want any more innocent people to die…

The woman sighed, "It is terrible that such people exist." She lifted Claire's face up to gently wipe away the tears before smiling, "It's good that you found my home. Now you and your child may have a peaceful night's sleep before going to the police tomorrow for protection."

Claire just gaped. She couldn't believe this old woman was willing to risk her life for a total stranger. "B-But you're in danger," Claire exclaimed, "I appreciate the food, but he can find me here! He will find me here! I have to go now." Claire made to leave, but a surprisingly strong hand kept her in place.

"These mountains are known to the people of this land as the Superstition Mountains," the woman's voice was somber; "They don't like to have trespassers of ill intent marching around. I believe that the hunter will find that his night will _not _be a pleasant one."

Claire felt a touch of fear in her heart, was the old woman trying to warn her? Was she in danger?

The old woman (and Claire really needed to learn her name because it was ridiculous that she kept calling the woman, "old woman") chuckled and said, "Ah dear. You need not fear. The mountains don't harm those who are innocent and need in of shelter. Now come. Let's get you into some warm, dry clothes and then I think it's time for bed."

As she pulled Claire up and led her down a hallway, Claire stopped the woman, Claire's savior for the night, and asked, "Wait! What's your name? Mine's Claire…"

At first it seemed like the woman would not reply as she pushed open a door leading to a small bedroom. Claire walked in, a little saddened about not finding out the woman's name, when the soft, alto stated, "I've had many names because I've wandered to many different places in my long life. Some of the names I've liked more than others. Here though, I am known as Iyatiku."

Before Claire could ask anything else Iyatiku pointed to a chest of drawers, said there would be towels and clean clothes in there, bid her goodnight and left.

The nightmare Claire had that night was nothing different than normal.

Her nightmares were never coherent, but always a blurred flow of images, sensations, and her ex-husband's voice rising above all else to doom her. Tonight's particular theme seemed to be "chase Claire with horrible, dark monsters over a land covered in lava." As Claire ran, tripped, and screamed in her dream—burning lava melting her hands and the soles of her feet, the monsters gouging furrows in her back with twisted claws, lungs dying from lack of air—Drake's voice loomed as an omnipresent, malevolent god. Sometimes the voice laughed a hyena's snarl; sometimes it screamed profanities and slurs at her; sometimes it was calm and sad, like a father deeply disappointed by his offspring.

She hated the last one the most because that one made him sound like he cared.

"Claire, Claire…" it would coo, "My poor little black swan, why did you decide to do this? You know you can't escape me, and I won't let you live now. My poor darling, Claire… why did you force me to hurt you? If only you could've learned to behave…"

She wanted to scream back that she never did anything to him, that he was sick and a freak and should be locked up forever. But her voice was always dead in her throat, a lump of sound that couldn't escape over her screaming and cries for help.

In her nightmare, Claire trips one last time and the monster are on top of her. They are pulling her to pieces and biting her and killing her and it hurts, it hurts, please oh god please…!

"CLAIRE! CLAIRE!"

Claire woke with a choked scream as Iyatiku held her tightly. It took a second for realty to reassert itself and once it did, Claire was nothing more than a sobbing mess. Iyatiku drew Claire close into her arms, and rocked the distressed mother-to-be back and forth, making small, comforting noises. In a small corner of her mind, Claire thought Iyatiku must have been a wonderful mother.

Finally Claire's tears stopped and dried, and the hysterical woman calmed down. Iyatiku continued to hold Claire though, and Claire found that she didn't mind the gentleness. After another few minutes of quiet comfort, Iyatiku drew away and studied the tired woman's face.

"Wait here," Iyatiku commanded before getting up and leaving the room. While Iyatiku was gone, Claire reached into her bag lying near her bed, and ruffled her hand around, searching for an old, worn picture. With a small noise of triumph, Claire pulled out a folded picture. Unfolding it, she studied carefully the memorized faces of a smiling couple at a park on their second wedding anniversary.

"What's that?"

Claire let out a tiny squeak at the questioning voice, and dropped her picture. Iyatiku put down the steaming cup in her hands, and picked up the picture, studying it like Claire had.

"This is a picture of you…" she started in an inquisitive tone.

"That's a picture with Drake and me, yes. It was our second anniversary." Claire's tone was tired but ready to become defensive.

Studying the picture for a moment later, Iyatiku mumbled, "You and your husband have different skin colors." Claire automatically stiffened. Iyatiku must have noticed the tension and chuckled, "Dear, I am an old 'Injun' woman. Trust me; you've nothing to fear about me judging you. I notice it only because it's nice to see progress made after so many years of bigotry."

Claire relaxed, and mumbled a shy, "Sorry."

Iyatiku merely waved the apology away like an annoying gnat before handing the steaming cup of tea—maybe? Claire wasn't quite sure what the liquid was and didn't know if she _wanted _to know either—to Claire and urging her to drink. Claire took a small sip and winced at the bitter taste.

Iyatiku smiled, "Ah, it tastes horrible yes, but as you will no doubt tell your little one… the more horrible it tastes, the better you feel afterwards. If for no other reason than your body will get well so you don't have to drink it anymore!"

Claire and Iyatiku shared a small smile and giggle as one remembered being a mother and the other imagined what her baby would look like. For a moment there was a peace in the room, a peace born of happy memories and hopeful dreams.

The storm outside decided to remind the women it existed then, and broke the sweet moment.

Iyatiku handed the photo back to Claire with a questioning look, silently asking Claire to explain why she still held a picture of her former abuser. Claire folded up the picture and tucked it back in her bag before answering, "That picture was taken on our second anniversary, as I said earlier. We look like any other happy couple, smiling and deeply in love… but it's what the picture doesn't show that is most important. The picture doesn't show how fake my smile is and how I am grinning so hard my face hurts because I'm frightened about what Drake might do later if he doesn't like the picture. It doesn't show that I'm doing my best not to flinch because Drake's arms are 'hugging' me so tightly that I can't breathe well and his hands are digging into a bruise that he put on me the night before when he 'accidentally bumped me into the corner of our dining room table. I keep that picture to remind myself that no matter how scared I am about what Drake might do to me… I can't take the risk of my child being forced into such a picture, pretending to be happy but secretly so afraid of Drake…"

Iyatiku hummed, "You are a very strong, young woman."

Claire just nodded, feeling very weak but not wanting to correct the older woman.

Iyatiku seemed to come to a conclusion then and slapped her hands together. She gently pushed Claire to rest against the pillows, tucking her in, and saying, "Enough of those memories. Why don't I tell you a story? This story is not very well known but it's one of my favorites anyway. I promise, it will keep the storm AND your nightmares away…"

A night with no nightmares sounded like heaven to Claire. So even though she was doubtful of the older woman's claims, Claire agreed.

(Although part of Claire wasn't sure to whether to be amused or embarrassed about being treated like she was six again and needing her 'mommy' to keep the monsters in the closet away.)

Iyatiku leaned back on a chair she had pulled up from the corner of the room and began, in that soft lovely voice, "Now the story takes place in the long, long ago. Back in the times when people lived as roaming groups and didn't ever count the days, only noticing the seasons to tell when it was time to harvest. This story is the beginning of a family: one mother and her twin daughters. But the family was very special…"

And with that, Claire was swept away by the tale.

Back when the Earth was just new, Great Earth Mother took Great Sea Father as her mate and the two had many children, one for each land. However, there were three children that Great Earth Mother loved most of all and so she gave them the most land to be their bodies so that they might be the strongest. These were the three lands in what is now known as the Americas: South America, Central America, and North America.

South and Central were very close and often seen together. They would often boast to their younger sister, North, of all the gold their human children had and what great monuments their children made. North America, however, was more aloof than her siblings and didn't care for such pretentious trappings. She was the youngest and thus the most spoiled by Great Earth Mother; her land was the biggest of them all and North would spend many happy seasons traveling everywhere on her lands. She picked up many names from the Natives who lived on her lands and was revered by them all because they sensed that she was the land and the animals and the people all in one, beautiful form.

Ah yes, I forgot to mention that! Sister North was very beautiful. Her hair was long, straight and black as a raven's wing. Her skin was a healthy brown from all her wanderings and her figure was long and lean with plump breasts and shapely hips to bear the bounty that sprung from the land. Her eyes were big and dark like a doe's and her lips always carried a gentle smile. Sister North was very happy, but she was sometimes lonely and would find herself staring into the night sky watching the stars and wishing that she too could have someone to love and call her mate.

Her heart's longing must have grown very loud, for one day Sister North had the strangest feeling of another being on her land. She traveled far to the North of her lands to the place now known as the great Niagara Falls. There, amongst the giant waterfalls, Sister North saw him. He flew down from the sky and his looks enchanted Sister North. His skin was pale as the moon, his hair was gold like the sun and wavy, his eyes were a deep blue-black of the night sky and he was tall with broad shoulders and strong arms.

Sister North went to him, and he said unto her, "I have seen you beautiful maiden watching the sky every night and I have fallen in love with you. I am the Prince of Stars and I wish to make you my bride. Please say you will have me or my heart will burst and I will die here." He held his arms out to her, begging her to accept his heart and become his wife.

Sister North smiled and ran to him. She said to him, "Oh Prince, I have always felt a longing for the stars that confused my heart. Now I know my soul sensed yours, and was simply trying to find you in the vast night. Yes, I will become your bride."

And the two kissed and embraced each other as a man and woman will do. Together they lived in harmony, walking all over Sister North's land, sharing smiles and kisses and love.

But it was not to last, unfortunately. As their life continued, Sister North noticed her beloved seeming to grow weaker and slower. His broad shoulders began to slump, and his strong arms began to tremble when lifting heavy burdens. Yet, Sister North pretended not to notice; she was afraid of what her husband's weakening might mean for their happiness.

After eight years, eight months, eight days, and eight nights the lovers returned back to their waterfalls and the Prince of the Stars turned to his beloved wife, with tears in his deep eyes, telling her, "My beloved North, I fear our time is at an end."

Sister North protested that they were not mortals like her people and could be together until the sun was dead. Her husband just sadly shook his head, "Beloved, I am a creature not meant to stay on this planet. My home has always been in the stars and by staying here for as long as I have, I have lost my connection with my home. I am dying and will be dead soon."

Sister North wept bitterly and held her husband tight to her chest. She cursed the sky for taking her Prince away from her.

However the Prince kissed her tears away and said, "No, my love, do not cry or rage, for I have left you two gifts." He placed his palm on her lower stomach and said, "In nine months you will give birth to two very special children. They will be children of the stars and of the land and will be strong and different from the Others-Like-You."

Sister North became frightened when she heard of her pregnancy. For she was a creature of the Land in human form, and when Others of Her Kind became heavy with child, it meant they were dying. For no land could support two generations of human forms. While part of her heart was gladdened to be having her lover's children, Sister North was afraid to die.

Her husband sensed her torn heart and held her saying, "Love, do not fear. These children are not only of the land. They are not heralding your death; instead you shall carve up your land into two halves." The Prince pointed to the land north of the waterfalls where they met and said, "The first child you have will be the Moon's Child. It will inherit the lands to the north where snow and winter reign supreme and night may last for seasons. She shall be a solemn, gentle child. Steady as the earth and reliable as the tides. Even as the moon might hide its face once a cycle, so shall it always return; that will be your eldest child. One who knows the snow can be gentle and beautiful but is also fierce and deadly. She shall be quiet and maybe overlooked or underappreciated like the poor moon, but beware those who anger her or harm her loved ones… for her wrath is a deadly ice that will crush and freeze her enemies."

Then the Prince pointed south of the waterfalls and said, "Your second child with be the Sun's Child. Bright and cheerful, this child will be like the summer. She will be full of energy and curiosity, always seeking to see more, she will run everyone else ragged. To her, freedom is the greatest treasure. She will seek to be untamed and to fly wherever she wishes. Her need to know more and see more and create more will speak of a great hunger in her soul. Her constant hunger and dreams will leave her to ignore those around her. Like the Sun, her fire will draw all to come to her… and many she will accidentally burn as she is so caught up in her energy. But for all her cheer, she too has a dark side. A side of hunger that draws her to take and take, and a side that when angered…" Here her husband stopped, before continuing in a whisper, "when angered I believe she will unleash the fires of the Sun upon the soul that has done her wrong. That is your second child."

Now Sister North felt a new fear and beseeched her husband for more answers. She begged, "Oh tell me, my love, fire and ice… sun and moon… summer and winter, these things are always enemies wishing to destroy its opposite. Am I doomed to watch my daughters grow and hate and fight one another?"

The Prince of the Stars looked grim and told his love, "The fate of our daughters rests in you my love. You must teach them to look past their differences and see that while they are opposites, they are also two halves of a whole. You must show them that the differences are their strengths to help their sister: when the elder child begins to grow resentful of the cold and of being underappreciated, that is when her younger sister shall bring the sun and warm her sister's heart. When the younger begins to become too distracted and lost in her dreams, the elder shall come and steady the younger. Together they can never be conquered for who can defeat the sun and moon? Who can ignore the chill of ice and the burn of fire? Who can fight in the summer and the winter? How shall you vanquish the north and the south?"

The Prince held his beloved wife with the last of his strength. In his dying whisper he said, "Do not fear my wonderful North. I believe in you. I know you shall guide our children and make them strong, and make them family. You shall teach them that apart they are strong, but together… they are… unbeatable. Goodbye…"

Thus the Prince perished, leaving behind a grieving but determined wife. She made a vow to protect her daughters and teach them to be a family.

Thus she traveled around the land for nine months, gathering allies and having adventures. Then when the seventh month of the next year came, she returned to the land of falling waters where she met her beloved husband. She lay upon the ground and for several hours, or several days—how is the mother to know? She is always too preoccupied with other matters to count the hours—she labored.

Her struggles and pain were not in vain though, for finally she brought forth unto the world two, baby girls with golden hair, blue eyes, and pale skin like their sky-born father. And the Land of the North smiled and loved the children. She thanked her Mother Earth for giving her the special time to be with her babies and then went forth to gather her children's spirit animals and teach them.

But those tales are for another day.

Iyatiku ended her story as she watched the young human mother sleep.

Gently the old woman smoothed out the blankets covering the peaceful human before heading to her front door. She stepped out into the maelstrom and smiled a cold, sharp slash of teeth. There was prey on her mountain. An arrogant human who believed he was a great hunter; a petty human who thought to know to value of a human life; a foolish human who wished to challenge her.

Iyatiku—sometimes called Atira, sometimes called Lelawala, sometimes called Spider Grandmother—would not be so rude a hostess as to ignore such a guest. He obviously wanted to learn a lesson about hunting on sacred lands. He obviously wanted to learn the value of life. He obviously wanted to learn what it was to insult a being that the Natives considered a living goddess.

(The creature with a human body shed its cloths as it walked into the rain, and began to laugh an inhuman sound, more an animal's howl for blood than anything resembling human joy. Her bone white hair whipped and twisted in the wind, casting shadows of snakes seeming to slither and slide on the dark ground whenever the sky lit up with jagged bolts. The whites of her eyes were gone, swallowed by her black irises. Her nails grew and sharpened down to claws ready to tear. Her teeth became flashing white points. Her body grew thinner and elongated with each step, transforming her into something hideous… when the transformation was done; nothing of the kindly Iyatiku who had tucked Claire into bed was left. Its hands had grown to be twice the normal length of a human hand, and its arms—while emaciated looking—where strong enough to break rocks. Its jaw seemed to have become unhinged to hold the _rows_ of long, razor teeth. Its torso seems to show a state of severe starvation as ribs could be counted, the belly was caved in, the breasts hung limp and long in the darkness—whatever cloths that had been on were now gone and the creature was naked despite the fearsome elements of the storm—and its legs were just as thin and powerful as its arms, the knees seemed spiky with how pointed and jutted they were.

It was something that clearly could be recognized as human, but such a terrible distortion of the human form that it was a monster: a laughing, _hunting_ monster.)

She smelled the air for the trespasser who wanted to learn so many lessons in one night and nearly howled with satisfaction when she caught the erstwhile student's scent.

She would have to be a very _thorough_ teacher for such an eager pupil.

The morning's light found Claire, groggy but peaceful, eating porridge of some kind with her hostess waiting for some guy to come pick her up. Apparently Iyatiku had a phone and had managed to call in a state trooper to come pick Claire up and take her to the police where she could be safe.

Honestly, Claire was surprised at how calm and optimistic she felt. She just had a feeling that she and her baby were going to be safe, finally safe. She gave a small grin, thinking, '_that's what a good night's sleep will do for your outlook on life: you get some Z's and suddenly everything's turning up roses._'

A polite knock on the door dragged Claire out of her peaceful stupor. Iyatiku gracefully rose from her seat and walked over to the door, opening it and beckoning the man inside. Claire's heart stopped.

He… was… gorgeous. Tan, healthy skin, ink black hair, and the same deep, doe eyes that Iyatiku possessed made him a sight that caused Claire's mouth to go dry and her palms to sweat.

In a pleasant smooth baritone, he introduced himself, "Good morning Miss. I'm Thomas Richardson, State Ranger in this area, I've heard that you've been having some troubles and need to talk to the police about your ex-husband?"

Claire opened her mouth and prayed something intelligent came out, "Your name's Thomas Richardson?" Well, it had been a nice hope, and at least her voice didn't crack like a boy going through puberty, right? That had to count for something!

As Claire began to almost trip over the fast apologies, Thomas just gave an easy grin and told her not to worry about it. Iyatiku seemed to only barely keep the smile off her face as she watched the two interacting. She loved to play the matchmaker and could already tell that she had done it again. Ah, she bet their babies would be as beautiful as their wedding was sure to be.

Claire went to grab her things, but Thomas stopped her and swung the items over his shoulder before showing her to his official state truck and gallantly opening the car door for her. Claire blushed at the handsome man's gentlemanly behavior and attention before running back to give a goodbye hug to Iyatiku.

Claire's eyes misted over and she whispered, "Thank you" before heading over to the truck and letting Thomas help her step up and into the state vehicle. Thomas gave a respectful goodbye and head nod to Iyatiku, and then drove away from the little cottage.

As they were making their way back to Phoenix and civilization (and having a friendly conversation, Claire was happily surprised to find), the two passed a collection of police cars and yellow tape. Claire turned to Thomas and asked, "What happened over there?"

Thomas' eyes gave a brief dart to the scene and he said, "Some idiot—probably the man who was chasing you, if you want my honest opinion—trespassed into the Mountains with a disrespectful attitude and evil intent. The Mountains do not take kindly to trespassers."

Claire, out of some morbid need to know, inquired, "C-Can I see if it was the man chasing me?"

Thomas gave her a very serious look and shook his head no. "What is left of that man is ugly and I don't want to give you nightmares. Hell, what I saw was enough to give _me_ nightmares and you don't need any more stress than you've already got what with that baby and your ex. Just take my word for it: he did not die easy, that man died in fear and pain. There are parts of him that are ripped so bad his skin is hanging on in strips and there are parts of him that look like he was chewed on by pack of wolves. It isn't pretty." Claire blanched at the graphic description.

She did not want to see the body.

A second later though, she began to panic and asked, "What about Iyatiku? Isn't she in danger of whatever animal got him?"

Thomas didn't say anything for a few heartbeats, seeming to ponder his words, "Iyatiku… no, she'll be alright. The animals and the Mountains know her. She, she doesn't have to worry about getting caught by what caught your hunter."

There was something about Thomas' words that caused a shiver to go down Claire's spine. A hint that there was some mystery here, but she was so far in the dark about it that she didn't even know there was a mystery! Claire gently rubbed her unborn baby and took a deep breath, then let it go.

If there was a mystery, Claire was willing to let sleeping dogs lie. She had more important things to worry about, like getting back to her parents, getting her divorce finalized, getting a home prepared for her baby… and getting Thomas' number. After all, sometimes there just seemed to be a higher being guiding you to the right guy, and who was Claire to ignore that?

So she smiled and went back to chat-flirting with her State Ranger, ignorant of her hostess' identity, ignorant of what happened to the hunter, ignorant of the truth in the tall tales Iyatiku had told, and better off in that ignorance for there are some things, we are not meant to know.

~~~0~~~~~ End… for now

**Wow. I don't know if all the stories will be this long, this one was kind of a monster but I had to get the mood set up you know? Anyone a special thanks to all my friends who have ever encouraged me. I'm participating in NANO this month so hopeful everybody will be getting a LOT of updates!**

**As for the female Canada and America… what can I say? I love me some good girl America, and this story might end up being set in the same universe as another story I'm working on. So there may be a higher reason for it. Anyway, since the Canada and America will be babies in this anyway, I don't think there is going to be much difference between them being girls.**

**MUCH LOVE AND PLEASE REVIEW!**

**91REDROSES**


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